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STEM Tea

STEM Tea | Mentoring junior faculty: how to handle the research tidal wave

Season 2, Ep. 14
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In this episode of the STEM Tea podcast, AJ Hinton is joined by guest co-host Andrea Marshall, a Staff Scientist in the Department of Physiology and Biophysics at Vanderbilt University (TN, USA) studying age-related changes in mitochondrial networks. The pair speak with David Drake (left), Professor of microbiology and infectious diseases in the Iowa Institute for Oral Health Research at the University of Iowa College of Dentistry (IA, USA), where his research focuses on the development of the oral microbiome in young children.


In this episode, however, the focus is on mentoring. Throughout David’s 35-year professorship, he has given back to the scientific community by mentoring junior faculty and teaching others how to be the best mentors they can be. He highlights the importance of finding work–life harmony, setting boundaries and having empathy for those starting their scientific careers. With references to Neil Young and Alex Soojung-Kim Pang, David shares the life lessons that have stuck with him throughout his career.


  • Introductions: 00:00–01:51
  • A day in the life of David Drake: 01:51–03:54
  • Why mentoring is important to David: 03:54–07:00
  • A musical meander down memory lane – the relevance of Neil Young’s “Old Man”: 07:00–07:57
  • What are David’s most significant accomplishments as a Professor? And how does he share lessons from these accomplishments with his mentees? 07:57–12:10
  • What advice would David give to an early career scientist? 12:10–14:31
  • What should early career scientists look for in a mentor? And how can senior faculty be the best mentors they can be? 14:31–18:46
  • Meet the mentors who influenced David’s life and career: 18:46–22:00
  • The life lessons that have stuck with David throughout his career: 22:00–24:53
  • Why is learning how to be a better mentor a worthwhile pursuit? 24:53–27:02
  • The “welcome to science, most of your stuff’s not going to work” lesson and how to teach it: 27:02–33:00
  • A mentor’s guide to setting boundaries and communicating them without discouraging mentees: 33:00–36:39
  • How does David spend his free time? 36:39–40:06
  • Navigating personal time, boundaries and breaks from work: 40:06–41:03
  • How does David encourage mentees to slow down? 41:03–45:17
  • The importance of reading: 45:17–48:37
  • What is David drinking? 48:37–50:14
  • Outro: 50:14–51:48

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    38:27||Season 2, Ep. 13
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  • 12. STEM Tea | How to lead a lab

    44:47||Season 2, Ep. 12
    In this episode of STEM Tea, host AJ Hinton is joined by Quinton Smith, an Assistant Professor at the University of California, Irvine (CA, USA). Quinton’s lab focuses on distilling the complexity of early human development to controllable factors, creating synthetic biomaterials that support the differentiation and expansion of stem cell-derived organoids and building small and large-scale vascularized tissues from single donor iPSCs for regenerative medicine applications.Here, Quinton discusses his journey into academia, his lab’s research and how he balances life with work, blocking out time to look after his mental health. Quinton and AJ then delve into leadership, including how to lead a lab, transitioning to a leadership role and the challenges that come with it. We also hear about academic life on the sunny West Coast! Contents·      00:00–01:00: Introductions·      01:00–04:05: Quinton’s journey into academia and life as an Assistant Professor on the West Coast·      04:05–06:00: Looking after your mental health in academia·      06:00–09:35: Quinton’s lab focuses and his mentoring style·      09:35–11:47: Challenges of balancing leading a lab with a faculty role·      11:47–13:45: Why choose this career path?·      13:45–16:30: Curating an inclusive lab ·      16:30–18:30: Transitioning to a leadership role·      18:30–24:14: Howard Hughes Medical Institute ·      24:14–27:55: Life outside science·      27:55–35:36: How has DEIA impacted your career?·      35:36–38:43: Breeding success and making an impact·      38:43–39:59: Communicating science ·      39:59–43:19: Favorite experiments·      43:19–44:47: What are you drinking?

  • 11. STEM Tea | Empowering youth, empowering communities: on a mission to decolonize knowledge

    54:09||Season 2, Ep. 11
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  • 10. Championing health equity for underserved communities

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  • 9. Beyond borders: building an international collaboration base

    44:52||Season 2, Ep. 9
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  • 8. The beating heart of bioengineering, cardiovascular research and DEI

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    44:18||Season 2, Ep. 7
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  • 6. Navigating the twists and turns of a career in academia

    36:18||Season 2, Ep. 6
    In this episode, host AJ Hinton is joined by Jenny Schafer – Managing Director of the Cell Imaging Shared Resource (CISR) Core and a Research Associate Professor in the Department of Cell and Developmental Biology (both Vanderbilt University, GA, USA) – and Evan Krystofiak – Research Assistant Professor in the Department of Cell and Developmental Biology. Krystofiak is also responsible for managing the day-to-day operations of CISR’s electron microscopy division.   Schafer and Krystofiak discuss their career paths, from their undergraduate degrees to where they are now, highlighting the twists and turns that scientific careers can take. Beyond work at the core, the two share how they like to spend their free time (raising chickens and tap dancing make an unlikely appearance…). ContentsIntroductions 00:00–01:03What have your career paths looked like up to this point and what brought you both to this work? 01:03–07:47What about your career excites you? 07:47–12:46What lessons have you [Evan] learned from helping others on their scientific path? 12:46–14:04 Have you [Evan] done any leadership or management training to help you mentor others? 14:04–14:55What lessons have you [Jenny] learned from helping others on their scientific path and how have you found mentoring individuals in your department? 14:55–18:08What achievements do you celebrate as a unit at the core and what personal successes have you had in your career? 18:08–20:37What personal qualities are beneficial for working successfully in science? And how would you re-evaluate an experiment if there are issues? 20:37–25:14How do you resolve conflict in the core? 25:14–28:24What do you do with your free time? 28:24–30:50How do you balance work and life? 30:50–34:15Ways to get in touch with Jenny and Evan and the importance of networking 34:15–35:40Outro 35:40–36:18
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